The truth about COVID-19 and its impact on children
Some children are already back in the classroom, while others are preparing to return to school, whether that’s for virtual learning or in-person instruction. There is a lot of politics in motion on the subject of children going back to school, and that is the focal point of heated debates.
During these unprecedented times, let’s focus on what is best for our children and educate ourselves on the truth about children and COVID-19.
Let’s be clear: Children do contract COVID-19
It is also true that infections among kids tend to be less severe than with adults and that children have died of the illness.
While President Donald Trump has been criticized recently for claiming that children are “almost immune” to the coronavirus, medical experts and the numbers show that is not true. At the beginning of the epidemic, it was indeed thought that children were seldom affected. However, now it is reported that as many as 339,000 children (age 18 and younger) in the United States have or have had the coronavirus through July 30, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Just this week, the AAP reported that 97,000 children tested positive for the coronavirus during the last two weeks of July. And right here in Shelby County, as of Aug. 5 there were 2,032 cases of children with COVID-19, according to the Shelby County Health Department. During a 10-day period in July, cases of children with COVID-19 increased 33% across Tennessee, according to the Tennessee Department of Health. Science also shows that children younger than age 10 have a much lower risk of becoming seriously ill from the virus, and children 18 and younger usually have mild or asymptomatic infections.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also reports that at least 45 children age 14 and younger have died from COVID-19 causes since the beginning of the pandemic. Nationwide, there have been almost 5 million reported COVID-19 cases; at least 162,000 people have died.
COVID-19 cases among children in the area
At the end of July, Shelby County had its first child death due to COVID-19. The 11-year-old was a patient at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Also in recent weeks, a 6-year-old girl became the first child to die of COVID-19 in Madison County, according to the Jackson-madison County Health Department. Both children had underlying illnesses.
In a report released last week, the CDC said “children are at risk for severe COVID-19.” The report indicates that Hispanic and Black children are much more likely to require hospitalization.
This reflects medical findings that African Americans and other minorities are more likely to get the virus because of underlying health conditions. In children, many times that underlying condition is obesity.
Other findings in relation to COVID-19
A severe COVID-19 complication found among children is multisystem inflammatory syndrome, referred to as MIS-C. Symptoms among children include fever, rash, eye infections, gastrointestinal problems and heart damage. The ailment, which affects at least two organs, tends to show up about a month after a child has been exposed to the coronavirus.
The CDC reports that out of 570 MIS-C cases it studied, 364 (nearly 64%) patients needed intensive care. According to the CDC, 10 children have died of the ailment. Last week, the Washington State Department of Health reported having 11 cases of MIS-C, all in children 10 years old or younger. More than half the cases were Hispanic children.
Though MIS-C is not common, parents need to be aware so they can contact their health care provider if their children develop unusual symptoms.
As school districts in Tennessee and around the country return to some form of education, doctors, specialists, educators and other experts are hopeful that increased testing of children will help determine what role they play in transmission of the coronavirus. “We know that children are major vectors or transmitters of infectious diseases,” says Yvonne Madlock, retired director of the Shelby County Health Department who continues to monitor COVID-19 developments. “Children bring illnesses acquired in school environments home; and they take illnesses acquired at home with them to their classmates, teachers, staff and friends. Children naturally tend to congregate and socialize in close contact with one another. Younger children especially are not known to have the best personal hygiene habits.”
Madlock emphasizes that of great concern for our public schools, especially Shelby County schools, is the large proportion of students who are children of color from low-income families that may live in multigenerational households. She says the health implications of that reality is that the students and their family members suffer disproportionately from medical conditions that place them at greatest risk for the most severe complications of COVID-19. These are the facts and this is why we need to seriously consider what practices, protocols and policies are necessary to make sure our children are safe. There should be mandates for students to wear masks, temperature checks, regular hand-washing and social distancing.
It is imperative that we limit the impact that COVID-19 has on the lives of our children.
Lynn Norment is a Memphis journalist who previously was an editor and senior writer for Ebony magazine. She can be reached at normentmedia@gmail. com.